Gainesville and Clermont are both good places to ride. Especially if you get some ride maps from the big century rides.

Here's a link for the Gainesville Cycling Festival.
http://gccfla.org/gcf/index.html.
This was a great ride, with mostly good roads, some challenging "hills" and that incorporates part of the Gainesville-Hawthorne Rail Trail.

Here's the Horrible Hundred.
http://www.horrible-hundred.com/hhevent.html
Two of our '09 group went back for 2010, that's us in the red, white and blue AB kits from '09 start. When I first did this in 2009, I had no real idea what to expect. I mean, how can one person tell another, "there's this hill called Sugarloaf. It's a bit steep but, its short." What's that mean?
So I made the turn onto Buck Hill Rd and my heart sunk as I watched people walking up. One guy on a recumbant trike looked like he was going backwards.

As I got closer I realized it was really a guy in a hand trike just gringing away. I gave some words of encouragement and rode on towards the top. Thinking I was conquering Sugarloaf, I turned to someone, who seemed to be with the hand trike, and said something cheesey like, "Tell me that was the BIG DOG?" his reply? "Nah, you're just getting started." I had 2 more to go on Buck Hill before hitting Sugarloaf about 70+ miles in. But, once you think it can't get any worse, there are the hills in the neighborhood and Hospital Hill.

Anyway, I'm sure we're all glad to see you enjoying yourself down here. It's good to hear about good experiences when we get so much bad press. Not that its not deserved or the driving public and gov't. But generally speaking, the clubs are strong and welcoming. As are nearly all of the shops and cyclists. Unfortunately, motorists and pedestrians on bicycles don't mix very well, and most "average motorist" can't tell the difference between us.

Enjoy and be careful.